Wife wins 'biggest' divorce award

Wife wins 'biggest' divorce award
An insurance magnate has been ordered by the High Court to pay his former wife Â£48m in what is thought to be the biggest divorce award in legal history.
John Charman, 53, had offered Beverley, 52, their home in Sevenoaks, Kent, and Â£6m after their marriage ended in 2003.

On Thursday, he said he would appeal against the ruling which was made in private last week in the Family Division of the High Court.

The sum awarded to Mrs Charman includes Â£8m in assets already in her name.

In a statement issued by Mr Charman and his solicitors, the 53-year-old said the award was "unfair and unreasonable".

He said he had made a fair and open offer to his wife of Â£20m, which would be "impossible for any reasonable person to spend in their lifetime".

Businesses in Bermuda

The couple, who have two children, were married in 1976 when neither had significant resources.

Mr Charman went on to have a successful career and build up considerable wealth in the insurance market in the City of London.

Note: This article was published before Harrison Ford's ex-wife, Melissa Mathison, was awarded $118 million in January 2004.

The winner is : Anna Murdoch

"They split amicably in 1998 but soon Rupert forced Anna off the board of News Corp and the gloves came off. The divorce was finalized in June 1999 when Rupert agreed to let his ex-wife leave with $1.7 billion worth of his assets, $110 million of it in cash. Seventeen days later, Rupert married Wendi Deng, one of his employees."